How we did it

TRAVEL

The best time to visit the Dolomites is March to June or September to midoctober, as the weather is warm but it’s not Europe’s summer holidays, when roads here get busy. The train from London to Venice takes around 20 hours and costs around £250 each way, which includes a sleeping berth (see trainline.com). Alternatively, Venice Marco Polo is the closest airport. Arabba is then a 2.5-hour drive away.

ACCOMMODATION

Arabba is a great base for a cycling holiday, perfectly appointed to access a host of famous climbs, many of which feature in the Maratona dles Dolomites sportive. We stayed at the Hotel Malita (hotelmalita.it), whose pasta was squisito and whose tiramisu was tira-amazing.

THANKS

Our warmest thanks to Jessica De Vallier from the Arabba tourist board (arabba.it), who found us the excellent Hotel Malita at the last minute and organised everything down to our Covid face masks. Thanks also to Andrea for guiding us around, and leaving at least some stumps where our legs used to be. Hopefully they’ll grow back.